Judge Joseph LaPlante Denies Priest’s Appeal

Allowing neither a hearing on the merits nor testimony of witnesses, U.S. District Court Judge Joseph LaPlante denied a Habeas Corpus petition of Fr Gordon MacRae.

After a long awaited procedural hearing in the Habeas Corpus appeal of wrongly convicted priest, Father Gordon MacRae, U.S. District Court Judge Joseph LaPlante for the District of New Hampshire echoed earlier rulings by state courts to deny the petition without a further hearing on its merits or testimony. In an Order issued on March 25, 2015, Judge LaPlante further ruled that he will not issue a Certificate of Appealability in the case. Like the State courts in previous rulings, Judge LaPlante declined to hear testimony from witnesses or from the imprisoned priest himself.

At this writing, lawyers for Father MacRae are exploring the possibility of a further appeal to the First Circuit Court of Appeals. I cannot speak to the legal ramifications of where this case stands, or of its future appeals, if any. That information will come to us in time. However, as one who has written of many of the parameters of this case, I want to write of what this latest ruling leaves unaddressed.

First and foremost, from the perspective of a layman outside the Judge’s chambers, there is an obvious perversion of the judicial system that turns justice on its head in this case. Defendant Gordon J. MacRae could have been released from prison over seventeen years ago had he in fact been guilty. The original prosecutors in this case presented an offer in writing to MacRae and his defense counsel. In that offer, MacRae would have served a maximum term of three years in prison if he would plead guilty to one charge with the dismissal of all others. MacRae, asserting that he is not guilty, declined that offer twice before his trial.

In the middle of his trial, just after the dubious testimony of 27-year-old Thomas Grover, prosecutors amended the plea offer. MacRae could have stopped the trial and served no more than two years in prison. The priest, citing his innocence, declined.

For those of us who stand on the outside looking in on the criminal justice system in New Hampshire there is an obvious problem here. Plea deals work out great for the guilty, but not for the innocent. The result is that the truly guilty often spend far less time in prison than the truly innocent, and the Father MacRae case is a classic example of that perversion of justice.

Each of the judges who have denied this man’s effort to revisit this case were aware, or should have been aware, that we would not even be having this discussion had MacRae been guilty and taken the deal. In the end, Father MacRae was sentenced to more than thirty times what the state was offering him in a plea deal. For a further examination of the plea deal v. trial dilemma, see a previous article, “Judge Arthur Brennan Sentenced Father Gordon MacRae to Die in Prison.”

ACCUSER THOMAS GROVER, ET AL

Layer upon layer in this perversion of justice will now be left standing unnuanced if this latest decision stands. If there can be no justice in a court of law, then we who write in the court of public opinion are left to expose these layers of injustice.

For any reasonable observer, the 1994 trial testimony of accuser, Thomas Grover, defies rational belief. The fact is that from indictment to sentence the justice system prosecuted this case without ever questioning Grover’s financial motive for bringing it. The Diocese of Manchester settled with him for almost $200,000.00. Further enabling this distortion of his motives, Judge Arthur Brennan, the original trial judge, kept from the jury Grover’s record of theft, forgery, drug, and assault charges.

Today the State prosecutors objecting to any reexamination of this case cite that some of the witnesses who have come forward with new information are “convicted felons.” Well, that’s true. From day one, “that sort” has always lurked in the shadows of this case. Meanwhile, Thomas Grover, who prosecutors and judges claim to believe without question, has a rap sheet as long as my arm.

That does not change the fact that the core of Grover’s testimony was ludicrous, and could have only flown in a judicial climate of hysteria about sexual abuse. This 27-year-old, 220 pound man wept dramatically on the witness stand in the 1994 trial as he described coming to the priest five times for help with his drug problem in the summer of 1983. Upon each occasion, he claimed with a straight face, MacRae the priest demeaned him, assaulted him, raped him, and left him traumatized. When asked why he returned from week to week having been so viciously assaulted each time, Grover blurted out, “I don’t know how I got there. I repressed it!” He then added that he had out-of-body experiences.

The place where this was all supposed to have happened was in a Church rectory office with a large window overlooking downtown Main Street in one of the busiest places in Keene, New Hampshire, and yet not a single witness to the assaults was every produced. No one saw or heard anything suspicious. See the place for yourself. I included some photos and a vivid description in “Justice and a Priest’s Right of Defense in the Diocese of Manchester.”

In that 1994 trial, Thomas Grover told the jury that he knew nothing of a planned lawsuit seeking money from the Diocese of Manchester. Later, outside the presence of the jury, Grover was asked how he afforded weekly counseling sessions with therapist Pauline Goupil after claiming chronic unemployment was a side effect of abuse. Grover stated that Ms. Goupil “worked something out” with his lawyer to get paid when he gets his settlement.

According to Thomas Grover’s former wife, Trina Ghedoni – another witness the courts declined to hear from today – Pauline Goupil was retained by Grover at the behest of his contingency lawyer because “They wanted him to act crazy before the jury.” In crucial testimony about a chess set in MacRae’s office, Ms. Ghedoni says today that Grover admitted to her that he perjured himself in that and other testimony because “it was what they wanted him to say.”

Trina Ghedoni described Grover as “a liar and manipulator who can tell a lie and stick to it until the very end,” and that is exactly what he did at this trial. Ms. Ghedoni adds today that she was herself bullied and manipulated by Grover and became a victim of domestic violence before this trial. “He broke my nose,” she says, describing a time when she disagreed with him. Yet today, state prosecutors contend, and judges seem to agree, that MacRae could have called her as a defense witness at his 1994 trial and expected her to stand up to Grover with the truth while they were still together. This defies reality.

Admittedly, a lot went wrong behind the scenes of this case, and some of it seemed to come from the latest issue of Soap Opera Digest. Some of those who came forward with new information had agendas of their own. The first was Charles Glenn, former stepson of accuser Thomas Grover now serving a prison sentence for second degree murder. State prosecutors made a big deal about undermining his statements that Thomas Grover lied and perjured himself by attacking his credibility for having a criminal record – again entirely overlooking Thomas Grover’s own extensive criminal record.

Charles Glenn first came forward a dozen years ago claiming to have knowledge and evidence that would overturn this case. He would not define that knowledge, but wanted substantial payment for it. Glenn made his overtures to another prisoner who then brought the information to MacRae. According to that prisoner’s signed statement, MacRae told him that he would not pay for the truth. Mr. Glenn then left prison without ever talking to MacRae.

Years later, Glenn came forward again, this time to an investigator, career FBI agent James Abbott. Glenn ceased his demand for compensation and signed statements that truthfully corroborated claims being made by his mother, Trina Ghedoni, statements that Thomas Grover repeatedly admitted to them that he perjured himself in this case for money.

Evil has a way of hating and obscuring the truth, however. Sitting in prison in punitive segregation for months on end, Charles Glenn became angry with his mother for what he perceived to be a string of broken promises. So he wrote a letter to Father MacRae’s lawyers declaring that his earlier statements about Trina’s former husband, Thomas Grover, were not the truth. Mr. Glenn also claimed that the investigator paid Trina Ghedoni for her statements and had an affair with her, a claim that both Trina Ghedoni and the investigator clearly deny.

It was preposterous, but State prosecutors jumped on it. So, apparently, did Judge LaPlante. According to court transcripts of the March 17 hearing the judge offered some testimony of his own without ever seeing or hearing from any of these witnesses:

“It’s a little ironic that we’re relying on MacRae’s investigator who, you know, improperly influenced witnesses. At least there’s evidence that he did, which is exactly the allegation made against the Keene police… Ghedoni and Glenn’s statements would have to be viewed pretty critically. They had a past relationship with Grover. And if their accounts are credited at all, including Grover’s physical abuse of Ghedoni, the breakup of their marriage under pretty sordid circumstances, and Grover’s sexually aggressive behavior toward Ghedoni’s daughters, that would give Ghedoni and Glenn reason to fabricate testimony or statements against Grover.” (T 48: 4-17)

Trina Ghedoni had been on parole because she was conned into covering for her son while he was on the run from the law. While on parole, long after she courageously wrote and signed her statements about Thomas Grover’s lies and perjury, she was about to be violated and sent back to prison because she was on the brink of homelessness due to being unable to pay her rent. She contacted investigator Jim Abbott, the only phone number she had of someone she could reach out to, and he loaned her back rent to preserve her freedom.

At the time, his investigation seemed over, the statements were signed and secured, and there seemed to him no reason why this good man was constrained from acting like a human being. Before paying the rent, he contacted Father MacRae and told him what had happened. Had there been a hearing on this matter, the Court may also have considered a subsequent statement sent to Father MacRae’s attorneys from the prisoner who was Charles Glenn’s cell mate at the time he wrote his “retraction” letter. I am protecting this writer’s identity because he remains in prison:

“On March 7, 2013 I was moved into a cell with another inmate named Charles Glenn …. He was angry and said he wrote a letter to one of [MacRae’s] attorneys stating that he completely lied in the statement he had written years before. Shocked by this, I said that by doing that he probably was killing Gordon’s case. He said that he knew that and felt really bad about it…. He told me that it shouldn’t matter anyway because he knew for a fact that Gordon was innocent and that he (Charles) had told the truth in the first statement he had written. He said that the letter he wrote to Gordon’s attorney was only written to remove himself from the case…. I am writing this so that the truth can still survive because it would be unfair and would haunt me not to do so.” (Letter of prisoner “John Doe”)

WITNESS TAMPERING

Today, two of the witnesses who have come forward – two more witnesses judges now decline to hear – report that a pattern of witness tampering took place at MacRae’s 1994 trial. At critical moments of cross-examination of Grover, these witnesses now report, he was riveted upon Ms. Pauline Goupil sitting in the back of the court. When questions were posed that Grover did not want to answer, Ms. Goupil was seen by two witnesses gesturing with her index finger from her eye down her cheek with a distinct frown on her face at which point Grover commenced crying to halt his testimony. One of the witnesses described this:

“I know what I saw and what I saw was clearly an attempt to dupe the court and the jury. If the sobbing and crying were not truthful, then I cannot help but wonder what also was not truthful on the part of Mr. Grover. If he was really a victim who wanted to tell the simple truth, then why was it necessary for him and Ms. Goupil to have what clearly appeared to be a set of prearranged signals to alter his testimony? The jury was privy to none of this to the best of my knowledge.”

The theatrics often ended a line of questioning or resulted in a recess. To date, no one in the criminal justice system has investigated this claim of witness tampering.

COMMON DENOMINATORS

There were others who accused MacRae, including others in the Grover family, and they all waited a dozen years to make their claims, all coming forward in the same week. Thomas Grover’s younger brother, Jonathan Grover accused first. He first claimed he was abused simultaneously in Saint Bernard Rectory and other places in Keene, NH by two priests acting both separately and in concert: Father Gordon MacRae and Father Stephen Scruton.

Jonathan Grover first claimed that these assaults occurred when he was ten years old. Then he changed this claiming that he was twelve years old. Church files revealed, however, that MacRae was first assigned at that parish when Jonathan Grover was fourteen years old, and Scruton was never there until Grover was sixteen. At one point, Detective James McLaughlin wrote in a subsequent report that he gave the Grover brothers a copy of MacRae’s resume “to help them with their dates,” dates which were consistently off by years, not days or weeks. Was McLaughlin investigating or choreographing this case?

Thomas Grover also accused Fr Scruton before accusing MacRae, and so did his other brother, David Grover. Scruton never denied any of it. Father MacRae’s trial lawyer failed to subpoena Scruton, opting instead to send him a letter. Scruton then fled the state. A new investigator found him in 2009 and Scruton agreed to a meeting. Scruton then suffered a mysterious fall down some stairs and died before that meeting could take place.

There was no evidence in any report anywhere that police ever questioned Father Scruton. If such reports existed, they were never handed over to Father MacRae’s defense. When the chronology problems from the Grover brothers’ claims became evident, Scruton’s name was just dropped from Detective McLaughlin’s subsequent reports and MacRae became the sole priest accused. For an analysis of the multiple claims MacRae’s accusers brought against others, see “In Fr Gordon MacRae Case, Whack-a-Mole Justice Holds Court.”

Keene Police Detective James McLaughlin wrote reports of these interviews, but despite his own uniform practice and procedure, he recorded not a single interview in this case. A year earlier, he interviewed another young man, “T.B.” who accused Stephen Scruton alone, and in that case McLaughlin audio and video recorded every interview. Why he recorded none of his interviews in the case against MacRae remains an unexplained mystery, but one of the two common denominators in these accusations is Detective McLaughlin himself.

FINANCIAL MOTIVES

The other common denominator in this story was money – lots of it – that each “victim” stood to gain by accusing MacRae. Their motives were never questioned. “I have to believe my victims,” McLaughlin wrote in one report. In another, “I asked him where he stood on a civil lawsuit.” Evidence surfaced demonstrating that McLaughlin conducted some of his pre-trial investigation out of the office of Thomas Grover’s contingency lawyer in Concord, NH, fifty miles from Keene. From that lawyer’s office, McLaughlin conducted several unsuccessful telephone “sting” attempts to solicit an admission from MacRae.

Among the witnesses the courts decline to hear from today is Steven Wollschlager, a young man who accused Father MacRae after a 1994 interview with McLaughlin. Today Wollschlager summoned the courage to state that he never went to Detective McLaughlin with a claim. He says the detective first approached him. What follows is part of his statement that the courts today decline to hear:

“I was aware at the time of [the] trial knowing full well that it was all bogus and having heard of the lawsuits and money involved, also of the reputations of those who were making the accusations… McLaughlin had me believing that all I had to do was make up a story… and I could receive a large sum of money as others had. McLaughlin reminded me of the young child and girlfriend I had and referenced that life could be easier for us with a large amount of money.”

At the March 17 hearing cited above, Judge LaPlante seemed to imply that this alleged attempted financial influence of witnesses is similar to Father MacRae’s investigator paying Trina Ghedoni’s rent. It is not. Ms. Ghedoni’s statements were already written and signed. Steven Wollschlager implies above that he was offered a direct bribe to bring perjured testimony before a Grand Jury. When asked by Dorothy Rabinowitz about this account in her most recent article on this case in The Wall Street Journal (“The Trials of Father MacRae,” May 10, 2013), Detective McLaughlin called it “a fabrication.”

A SEX ABUSE VICTIM WORLD RECORD

Ms. Debra Collett, Thomas Grover’s one-time counselor in a residential drug treatment center is another witness the courts today decline to hear. She reports that she was threatened and bullied by “coercion, intimidation, veiled and more forward threats,” “overtly threatened,” and “confronted with threats of arrest” by Detective James McLaughlin and another Keene police officer during pre-trial attempts to get her to alter her statements and planned testimony, to get her “to say what they wanted to hear.” What they wanted to hear was that Grover identified MacRae as the perpetrator of sexual abuse in his sessions with her as he claimed he did.

But it simply wasn’t true, Ms. Collett says today. She reports that during treatment Thomas Grover accused so many people of sexual abuse that “he appeared to be going for some sort of sexual abuse victim world record,” but he never accused MacRae. He did, however, accuse his adoptive father, an accusation that ex-wife Trina Ghedoni today confirms that Grover made. In regard to Father MacRae, Ghedoni adds that Grover “never said one word of abuse by MacRae in all the years we were together” until the prospect of money loomed.

Today, courts claim that procedure bars any of this from being heard, weighed, and considered. Prosecutors claim that the courageous people who have come forward with new information have dubious pasts of their own and didn’t come forward in time. So far, the judges seem to agree that procedural justice actually bars justice.

There are other crimes beyond claims of abuse alleged to have occurred here – crimes of larceny, witness tampering, bribery, and perjury – and unlike the charges of abuse against Father MacRae, there is evidence to support the commission of those crimes. Justice in the light of day requires a full and complete hearing by any means possible. Is the justice system now telling us that this is the only means left?

Editor’s Note: At this writing, we are informed that it is now necessary to appeal the Judge’s ruling denying a Certificate of Appealability. We are told that appeals at this level involve very fine points of law that must be argued. Therefore, we must extend our fundraising effort as this matter winds its way through the courts. Father MacRae is deeply grateful to readers for their generosity and spirit of justice. As this troubling case proceeds, there will be other costs, legal and otherwise. Should you wish to help or to continue assisting with the support of These Stone Walls, the PayPal link on TSW remains active. Please, see the CONTACT page on These Stone Walls for additional avenues of assistance, and for the address of Father MacRae’s legal fund. You may also help very greatly by sharing a link to the above post and this note. Thank you and God bless you.

About Fr. Gordon J. MacRae

The late Cardinal Avery Dulles and The Rev. Richard John Neuhaus encouraged Father MacRae to write. Cardinal Dulles wrote in 2005: “Someday your story and that of your fellow sufferers will come to light and will be instrumental in a reform. Your writing, which is clear, eloquent, and spiritually sound will be a monument to your trials.” READ MORE

Comments

I have not expressed my opinion here for quite some time, but it is mostly because I feel that I have to hold my tongue. There is a lot on this site that perturbs me, and especially in this post. Let me get this straight: State prosecutors do not believe some of your new witnesses in this case because they are convicted of crimes. One of those witnesses is Mr Charles Glenn. He is obviously very opportunistic. So he wrote a letter claiming that his dear mother had an affair with your investigator, utter nonsense, but the State not believes every word that comes out of this punk’s pen? How convenient. And the judge takes the side of the prosecutors without having heard or even seen any of these people including Father Gordon MacRae. As I proceeded to read and learn more, not only about this case, but about those hearing it, I learned that Judge Joseph LaPlante in 2012 was presented with the Saint Thomas More Medal by Bishop Peter Libasci of the Diocese of Manchester. So then I read a bit about Saint Thomas More. I can only draw one conclusion. He would have given everyone a fair hearing. He would have heard both sides. I sure hope this judge wasn’t wearing his medal that day!

Dear Father Gordon,
I have been following your site for several years and am utterly dismayed by this travesty of justice.
Please know that I am praying for you and, knowing that you have Scottish ancestors, have also asked for the intercession of St Margaret of Scotland.
God bless you.

I am having a difficult time understanding WHY Judge LaPlante would deny Fr. Gordon’s petition. Perhaps I am just ignorant of legal processes. Doesn’t he listen to other cases without brushing them off? Other difficult cases? What is he getting paid to do? Is not this case just part of his job, what he was appointed to do? Or are there so many cases coming before him that he has to triage the cases facing him? If that is the case, certainly Fr. Gordon’s case is amongst the urgent ones, REQUIRING immediate attention. Why is there NO ONE (meaning no judge) wiling to do whatever is required to handle this case? Why is NO ONE willing to make this case his responsibility? Is there such a difficulty involved (besides horrible embarrassment for the State of New Hampshire and the entire judicial system) that no one wants to be associated with it? Will any judge willing to do what is right get his hands dirty or lose his reputation or put a halt to his career advancement? Or is it just plain laziness?

This is horrific. Shocking. I’m very sorry, Fr Gordon that injustice continues to be imposed upon you. It is hard to comprehend. I am very angry. There is diabolic efforts at work – I can see no other explanation for how this flagrantly wrongful conviction has been allowed to stand.

Where are the good judges? – Why do they not demand an end be put to this blatant miscarriage of justice??!! Why on earth aren’t the public representatives, the Secretary for Justice, etc., demanding that the habeas corpus application be heard and determined immediately?? The case is an appalling scandal that brings the American judicial system into disrepute. Where is the American Media and public? – why is there not an outcry to have the conviction and sentence quashed, and reparation made to Fr MacRae? Why is there not outrage at the abuse of the administration of justice by trial judge, prosecution, police detective? Where are all of the journalists, broadcast and print, telling this story of egregious injustice to the public? Why are not those who know the story being interviewed on the big TV discussion shows and investigative programmes??

That none of this seems to be happening points to a diabolic conspiracy to prevent the truth from being heard, in court or in Congress, or even in the Media.

Blessed Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle . . .
I’ll continue to pray that the truth will come out, for consolation and perseverance in suffering for you, and that God’s Will be done, and souls saved by your offering up of your persecution. You are a great witness as a priest and a man. Thank you. You have my support in your ongoing denial of justice. Your sister in Christ, Lynda Finneran

​​Dear Father Gordon,
I am so sorry to hear this disappointing news. I pray for you and your fellow inmates every day.

It is a sad thought that our beloved church leaders have not supported you or the many other priests accused of crimes against children. I don’t understand how the Church that promotes the Love of Christ can turn her back on her servants. She should be protecting her ministers as her own children. I hope your story does wake up our leaders and bring the Church to support her priests both living and long dead. I understand how the church wants to promote healing of truly abused children, but she shouldn’t throw her servants under the bus by not allowing them any defense.

I see you in the same situation that Jesus was with the leaders of the Jewish nation who could not accept him and had him crucified. I know you have considered where Pornchai and all the other men you have ministered to would be had they not encountered you? You are doing a great work through your your ministry to the inmates there and reaching the world through your blog. Be strong in carrying your cross because you have an army praying for you!

I was hoping for justice when I went to this blog. However, Fr. MacRae
will have to wait even longer. This week, The New Yorker, had a great
article on men who served long terms and later were found to be innocent. One of the guys had been offered 3 years like Fr. MacRae but
turned it down also. Ryan McDonald also reminded us that the prosecutors lowered their offer to 2 years after Mr. Grover’s unbelievable testimony. I believe one of the prosecutors committed suicide after this case.

I had written to Pat Buchanan’s website last year hoping he would write
about it. Perhaps he did not see it. We need to pay constant attention to this travesty and remind others to write about. I know Fr.Z wrote about it once but once is not enough.

All of the Catholic writers with a public platform ought to be writing and crying out about this injustice. Not only Catholics but all journalists and public commentators of goodwill who care for truth and justice.

One more battle has been lost but not the war. We have victory in Christ. Yet, as it has already been pointed out here, our Lord’s ways and timing are not ours.

Father Gordon, please allow me to remain spiritually close to you at this time though I am geographically quite distant.

Thank you Ryan for your tremendous work in presenting Father MacRae’s case. I was also touched by all the comments, they helped me to pull myself together and be able to break my speechlessness. I hope they will be of help to Fr. MacRae.

Besides doing all that has already been said to help Father MacRae it may be an additional and potent weapon to pray to St. Michael The Archangel, either in the shorter forms or better in the longer one as written by Pope Leo XIII (see all of them at ).

Please, continue to keep up, Father Gordon, that I pray to God, Our Lady and St. Joseph.

More united in prayer than ever, I remain your friend in Christ and may He bless you all.

I want to thank Ryan MacDonald for another incisive post, and I want to thank readers for these terrific comments and for your concerns and prayers for me. I learned of this decision on Wednesday of Holy Week. I did not want to announce it then because I did not want my story to detract from Holy Week and Easter. I knew of this outcome when I wrote “You Did It To Me,” my recent Divine Mercy post. Ryan has a follow-up post coming this Wednesday. We do have an opportunity for another appeal, but it is both expensive and a long-shot. For my part, I will carry my cross in the field of the Lord for as long as God gives me the strength. Please, do not be concerned for my spirit. Despair is simply not in my nature, thanks to the grace of God, nor should it ever be in yours. With thanks and Divine Mercy blessings, Father Gordon

Thank you Fr. G.! Am hoping to get that snailmail off to you soon…My “cell” has many more comforts than yours. I believe Jesus allows it because of my age &, because He meassures EVERY Cross!! Pax Christi ‘little brother’…(in age only!) Please remember ArchBishop Cordileone (?) of San Francisco in your Mass…He’s in the Enemies Crosshairs! SNAP! What a coincidence with his name, to be Bishop of San Francisco….

I am so very sorry that there is no end in sight to the terrible injustice Fr Gordon. My prayers are going up asking God to strengthen and console you in this setback. Thank you for your writing and wonderful ministry to those witnin aNd without these stone walls

When I read this latest TSW post, I could not sleep that night. The thoughts were many: prayers for Fr. G’s strength, wondering what is behind this “saving face” of the NH judicial system. One of my thoughts was that this will not be news in any media of note. If the public at large knew of this, the judicial system might have to “save face” by coming round to a just decision. WHERE IS 60 MINUTES? WHY NO DOCUMENTARY? WHY NO MOVIE ABOUT FR. G’s LIFE BEFORE AND NO IN THESE STONE WALLS? Who with media connections or money will take on broadcasting across America this travesty of justice? I wonder if ongoing publicity and public opinion could turn the tide.

I am late coming to this most recent post, so I did not see it till just now. I am not, however, surprised by this development (frustrated and saddened? yes) but the court system has degenerated over the last few years to a point that it only barely has anything more to do with actual “justice”. I only know what Our Lady said to Bernadette:
“I do not promise you happiness in this life, only the next.” You will surely wear a martyr’s crown.

I’m working on a theory. Maybe it’s well known to better-read minds, but it’s new to my mind. My theory is this:

When God loves you, He spares you pain.

When He loves you very much, He comforts you in your pain.

When He loves you even more, He gives your pain a purpose.

But when He loves you the most He can possibly love, He asks you to BECOME HIM. He gives you HIS PAIN. He asks you to enter directly into the heart of Jesus, He transforms your heart into His, so you suffer in the very way JESUS DID.

So Father, maybe Jesus is giving you His heart. Giving you His pain to allow you to know Him the most intimately that it is possible to know Him.

I’m thinking when God really loves someone, it hurts.

Maybe?

I pray I’m not saying anything erroneous. This theory is a work in progress.

I like Maryann’s theory. It sounds like it is inspired. It reminds me of a couple of things some other wise people have said:

“Those whom God loves suffer much.” and “In the end it is not how much you accomplished but how well you endured.”

Based on those words, God loves Fr. Gordon. Even though it may not be required, Fr. Gordon has accomplished more than he knows and probably won’t find out how much until Eternity and we can only try to imagine how much he has endured and will continue to endure and keep him in our prayers.

I pray this is not the end when it comes to appeals. I believe Fr. Gordon is factually innocent of what he has been accused of and he has certainly been denied due process.

Kathleen, St Teresa said that and she broke a leg shortly after if I remember well. Perhaps she should have kept silent. I have complained aloud — sometimes publicly — to the Lord but now I understand we move like worms who cannot see much more than we have in front of us. God is way above us in time and space. We must go through this for Him as He went through the Passion for us. No one makes it to Heaven in a bed of rose petals. We have to conquer our pain and learn to enjoy it — yes, enjoy it — because such is the way of Heaven. Fr Gordon will see the reverse of these dark days one day and they will seem like a bad dream. But his tormentors will have to face the terrible Judge whose incorruptible justice rules the whole universe. We must also remember the words of Our Lord: we shall receive our prize “in this world and in the world to come.” I hope Fr. Gordon receives his prize here and that his example will turn many to accept the faith. The way of suffering is often fruitful and to those whom He deems worthy, Jesus reserves the choicest splinters of the Cross and the glorious fruit of conversion.

Carlos: I pray you’re right! 🙂 (I know you are) I’ve not yet come to the point where I’m grateful for the pain itself….but, I am grateful to have my offering, made when I was in my late 40’s, accepted…And I’m grateful for all of the “S” & “s” Saints that I have known, & that are still around me…

I cannot understand how this legal system is so backwards in it’s attempt at justice. Fr.Gordon is truly suffering for the sins of those who have done this to him and the other innocents.We must not give up praying. It is about His will not ours. He wants Fr. there for a reason which seems to be for the souls in that prison. He has done so much with so little. All we can do is trust in God.God bless you all! Jeannie

Dear Father: I’ve felt so burdened with this latest news that I’ve been nagging the Lord to let me know how I can accept it in His peace.
And this is His explanation which likely you are well aware of already:
He said, “Father Gordon is making reparation for the souls of all involved in this case and those even beyond it: The reparation requirements have not yet been met and until they satisfy my justice he will remain in custody. It is a heavy burden but the rewards of his suffering are immense and so many souls will be delivered because of his FIAT.”

I don’t know if this is a comfort for you in your circumstances but for me it explains the incarceration of good people in all kinds of dire situations, poor health, family crisis, war, etc. If we can see our sufferings as an extension of Christ’s redemptive work in our lives it doesn’t eliminate the pain but it makes it more bearable.

I don’t for a minute think you should stop the retrail process; I’m only reminding myself that God’s Will triumphs in the end and He truly wants all souls to be saved, including the ones that have caused so much grief.

Agree with Fr. Chuck – I was also SHOCKED to read the results. I couldn’t believe what I was reading. Very hard to digest because I was so positive in thinking that Fr. Gordon would be FREE and leave TSW. Like Fr. Chuck I was so DISGUSTED!! Also wondering why Judge LaPlanta DECLINED to hear testomony from witnesses, and also from Fr. Gordon!
What kind of a court hearing is this procedure permitted?? Like you said, in a kangaroo court – how awful to be denied having a voice heard for your own defense. When will justice prevail??

Our only hope and prayer now is to pray for Thomas Grover to TELL the TRUTH. It seems hard for me to believe anyone with a CONCIENCE ,
could be going on with his life as usual for 20 yrs., and not feel guilty at all for his lies. I don’t know how he can SLEEP at night, knowing that Fr. Gordon has been in prison all these years because of his lying. If that was me, I probably would have horrible nightmares, which would force me to tell the truth.

I will continue praying for Fr. Gordon’s release until he is out of there. But I will also be praying for the conversion of Thomas Grover to make this a reality.This will happen in GOD’S timing not ours! God has his reasons for everything. When I have troubles, I always ask God to tell me in a dream what I should do!! HE NEVER has given me an answer in a dream. Guess the LORD thinks – you have a brain – use it for the best.

Dear Father Gordon,
words fail me at this montrous decision, why does it take so long for this Judge to come to a decision ? Contrary to what the rest of us think. I suspect someone else is pulling the strings !
you will remain in my prayers. Christus Vinci.

I am so very sorry to read this. Am praying for you and for the conversion of Mr Grover and for the others who have a part in this injustice. Sometimes “Jesus I trust in you” is so difficult but there is nowhere else to go. God bless and console you.

My Dearest Father Gordon,
I couldn’t write last night, because I was so troubled in my spirit. I, like a few others who commented, asked God why? But my next prayer was Your will, not mine be done! God has a purpose for allowing you to walk through this. Just as Job did, as St. Padre Pio did, and more importantly as His only Son, Jesus did! I offered my Mass and Holy Communion for you and my house arrested Priest Friend. When I shared your story with a spiritual friend if mine tonight, she said ” like Jesus”! Yes like Jesus , you suffer and are put in the tomb, but when God’s time is right, there will be a Resurrection, YOUR Resurrection!! You will be vindicated! Please DO NOT give up. So many of us are storming Heaven for you. This is just an obstacle. And, this to shall pass! My heart and prayers are with you. And they are also offered for God’s Mercy on all who have and had a hand in this mess. God bless you abundantly ! I am honored to know of you, as you exemplify Gods love, Mercy and Patience. Please hold on, the Resurrection is coming!!

Father: I really wish I could say something that would take away the pain and disappointment that you must feel with this egregious unjust decision…..but I know that is something only God can do through our prayers which I pledge and continue. Psalm 55 tells us: “Entrust your cares to the Lord and He will support you. He will never allow the just man to stumble.”
God is faithful to His word and we will not be disappointed. This is not over by any means. This affects all of us both as Catholics and Americans. No one can deny our God-given rights. God in His own way and time will prevail over this evil and we will see our hope realized in the end. I know that you will never give up hope, nor will all those who are journeying with you through your blog. My Brother, you are not alone and you will never be alone. May God grant us His peace which transcends this world.

You remain in all of our prayers, of course. But, your trials over the years must remind us all that God is a God of Mercy and Justice unlike our concepts of both, and that His ways are so far above our ways.

I so very, very sorry – I can’t even begin to imagine how devastating this news is for you. Please, please know that there are many of us- beyond the Stone Walls, who grieve with you at this monstrous decision, and who think of you with love and prayers.

Father Gordon,
I’m just so sad to learn that the judge has dismissed your appeal, it’s hard to believe that he couldn’t see what appears so obvious to so many. This is a travesty of justice that’s impossible to fathom.
I pray that God gives you all the strength, courage and faith you need to endure this latest setback. I’ll be upping my prayer effort along with very many of your followers I’m sure. God bless

Are we not called to be a people of hope? I ask because I have this crazy idea that maybe we, the supporters of Father Gordon and his cause, should be praying for the conversion of Mr. Grover. I mean, what would happen if God melted his heart and he came forward with a contrite heart and a desire to be forthcoming with the truth? I know, I know, this is preposterous on so many levels, but the hope inside prompts me to pray for Mr. Grover’s conversion. I hope you will join me in my crazy notion and put your faith into God’s hands … With God all things are possible … Amen!

It’s not preposterous at all Doug, I’m pleased to read your comment because you describe exactly what I’ve been praying for – the conversion of Thomas Grover. The way I see it, Mr Grover is the jailer holding the key to Father Gordon’s cell in the palm of his hand. His repentance would unlock that door, bringing this terrible injustice to an end. He’d also be saving his own soul. I’ll continue to pray that this is indeed God’s plan, and that the time will come soon.

This is very discouraging – I was so hoping it would be the beginning of something good. But, like others have said, “It is for God’s mercy, not our own will.” I just read Fr Donald Calloway’s book, “No Turning Back” – his amazing conversion that few believed possible, which shows that even the most hardened criminal can be “knocked off his horse” like St Paul.
And – that is a good reason to pray for Thomas Grover. He too cannot resist what God wills. So, I will pray for him too, along with praying for Fr Macrae.

You continue to be an example of true Christianity for my family and I in a society and a world that continues to get more insane every day. We fight against principalities and powers. We will pray for you and all the persecuted Christians. And for the Godless, evil elements in our government….”With what measure you measure will be measured to you. Pressed down and shaken over.”

This Whole thing is, at it’s base, DEMONIC!! However, Fr. G.’s Case, his Reactions & his Actions, are the most Brilliant Testimony to the Grace of God, Present, & Overwhelming EVIL, ALWAYS!! How many CONVERTS do the bishops who Helped place Fr. G. in Prison have?? How MANY of these bishops have Thousands (more, I’m sure!) reading their words every day…For Spiritual Direction in our RC Desert? How many RCs looking for direction in their lives, go to the USCCB Site? (I promise they won’t go more than once) …..My husband of 55 yrs & I consider it a Rare Privilege to donate what LITTLE money money we have, to Fr. G. in one way or another. Further, as long as the USCCB continues to IGNORE Fr. Gordon’s Case, their cries for “Social Justice” are a Stain on their Office. How can we donate anything for their Projects, when they ignore those Priests they have thrown under the bus??? Fr. G. is NOT Alone!!….We DO pray for the Bishops & Respect their Office…we just wish that most of them would Respect it as well. Those Faithful Bishops who do Speak out need to have Loud “THANK YOU’S” from the Pew!! Please, ask your Parish Priest to PRAY for Fr. Gordon! Assure him you Pray for him & thank him for his Vocation…Call your Own Diocese & ask the Bishop to HELP…..Print the Info, & Pass it around…Make a Loud Noise for our Good, Holy Priests who are under attack, Just as our Families are!! “White Martyrdom” is the ‘Sign of Our Times’…(Thanks be to God, I’m such a Chicken!) We Need to Speak Out!! It’s anti-Catholic to be Silent….

“They wanted him to act crazy before the jury.”Ms. Ghedoni says today that Grover admitted to her that he perjured himself in that and other testimony because “it was what they wanted him to say.”
Trina Ghedoni described Grover as “a liar and manipulator who can tell a lie and stick to it until the very end,” and that is exactly what he did at this trial. Ms. Ghedoni adds today that she was herself bullied and manipulated by Grover and became a victim of domestic violence before this trial. “He broke my nose,” she says, describing a time when she disagreed with him. Yet today, state prosecutors contend, and judges seem to agree, that MacRae could have called her as a defense witness at his 1994 trial and expected her to stand up to Grover with the truth while they were still together. This defies reality.

I am beyond anger. Not sure what’s beyond it, but I can no longer be angry about this case and the gross injustice. Anger is fruitless and best left to God. He WILL be avenged.

I am deeply saddened and yes, grieved, at the stonewalling of this case at every turn. I have read much and written little.

Psalm 13 says, “How long, O Lord? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I harbor sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look, answer me, O Lord, my God!”

I don’t know how Father MacRae is holding up, but I am grateful that the latest prison retreat, The Three is One, has just started. Surely, there is some help and consolation for him there.

I have long prayed hard and fervently for Father MacRae (as have MANY, MANY other people). But, I have never fasted for him or for anyone else. But, now I begin a fast for this good man who has been so deeply wronged. Some things cannot be accomplished by prayer alone.

I am convinced there is much more going on here than meets our mortal eyes. It’s not just a matter of a battle in the courtrooms or in an appeal process. As scripture says in Ephesians, “Our battle is not against human forces but against the principalities and powers, the rulers of this world of darkness, the evil spirits in regions above.” There is a VERY REAL battle taking place in the heavens between Satan and his minions and Saint Michael and the good angels over Father MacRae’s fate and very soul.

The players in this 32-year old drama are not (and haven’t been) acting entirely under their own power. I’m not saying or implying that Satan is directing them or owns them. But, he and his minions are DEFINITELY hard at work. He HATES Father MacRae with a hatred we cannot even imagine, an eternal hatred. He HATES the purifying that is going on in his ever more beautiful soul. He HATES all the good that is happening in the prison in Concord because Father MacRae is there. He HATES that his tremendous efforts are not having the effect he wants. So, he tries to destroy, discourage, hamper, trip up, frustrate, condemn, stone wall and everything else negative. He can do nothing positive. And, I imagine, he HATES that too.

Father MacRae appears to me as someone who springs up from discouragement. Perhaps not immediately or easily. But, this quote from Habakkuk comes to mind when I think of him right now:

“For though the fig tree blossom not nor fruit be on the vines, though the yield of the olive fail and the terraces produce no nourishment, though the flocks disappear from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet will I rejoice in the Lord and exult in my saving God. God, my Lord, is my strength. . . ”

Let the fasting begin. For me and for anyone else who cares to join me.

AMEN JoAnn…I too am & have been Fasting…..I would encourage all who can join in. Remember, offering of disability & sickness, is a way of Fasting…not only food or TV….I believe we are in a time where, Fasting should be the norm….

Right on M.C. In every square inch of Earth, battles are being fought by decent people against evil forces. What is great,when you stop to think about it, this travesty of justice which has hurt
A good Priest like Father Gordon, has also enlarged his supporters around the globe.
Hope the demons are quaking in their hooves.

Hi, Father.
I am very sorry to read about this judge dismissing your appeal.
How can America be called ”The land of the free”with this kind of carry on,
this behaviour would’nt be tolerated in Russia.my wife and i will continue to remember you in our daily Rosary and Divine Mercy.
God bless.

Dear Fr. Gordon,
I am so very sorry to read the news. The Lord has called you to more intense suffering. I am already offering prayers that you will not be too discouraged. Words escape me. I will pass this on to as many as possible so that we can try to raise more money for an appeal.

So sorry to read this news. I pray Fr Gordon will not give up hope, that the truth will prevail in the end and that Fr Gordon may continue to be an inspiration to all with whom he interacts in his daily life, drawing them closer to the Lord. This is a setback, but I pray that the matter will be resolved in such a way that the Truth will win out. leaving no-one in doubt. I will keep Fr Gordon and his team in my prayers. Who know, sometimes these setbacks allow us to take a slightly different path and approach that will lead to victory.Keep that Light shining in the darkness…we are an Easter people and Alleluia is out song.Don’t ever give up!

I am offering my prayers for your comfort and for the sake of truth. Don’t be discouraged, where there is life there is hope … the darkness of the whole world can’t extinguish the light of one candle. We love you, Father!

Can this case be reopened for extreme elements of lawyer malpractice and malfeaseance toward a client’s defense ?
In family court cases the statues of limitation shut down everything against the wronged parent that was not represented by a competent litigator( but with a crappy/lazy person with a law degree). Since family court is consider only a civil matter injustice of sorts ( the parent that does’nt have the agressive attorney does’nt get their story put forth properly and ” only loses” their parental rights) *** BUT A PRISON CASE WITH SO MUCH FRAUD THAT TAKES AWAY A PERSON’S FREEDOM AND LIBERTY SHOULD NOT HAVE STATUES OF LIMITATIONS( or should it?). You need a high power group effort law firm that does probono work for people doing long sentences that may be innocent ( the innocent project by Barry Scheck is a great organization; they do death row cases; the sentence father MacRae is fighting is a death row case for him !

Sorry to hear the bad news regarding this case. Anyone that loses their freedom to judicial fraud makes all of society victims(time , money and personal gifts to the commmunity and society are vanquished from their proper usage).